1. Field of the Invention
The subject invention relates to mounting structures and methods, to transducer head mounts and to information recording or transducing systems.
2. Prior-Art Statement
Transducer heads and transducer head mounting structures are well known in various fields of endeavor. By way of example, and not by way of limitation, transducer heads are extensively used in information recording and playback. Familiar examples in this respect are magnetic recording and playback heads used in magnetic tape recording systems.
By way of further example, reference may be had to U.S. Pat. No. 3,326,440, by C. A. Barnes et al, issued June 20, 1967, and disclosing a high precision tape transport mechanism. Among various tape transport parts and components, that patent discloses a head mount including a heavy metal bracket having a base flange, a vertical plate rising from the base flange and a further flange projecting horizontally from the vertical plate and overhanging several transducer heads. The transducer heads, in turn, are supported on a metal spacer block having a top layer of elastomeric material which is pressed against the transducer heads for damping purposes.
In one embodiment thereof, the system of the cited patent employs for each transducer head a differential screw with which the particular head may be adjustably inclined in the plane of the adjacent traveling tape. In particular, the differential screw has a first thread meshing with a threaded bushing in the above mentioned overhanging horizontal flange, and a second thread having a pitch different than the mentioned first thread and meshing with a threaded bore of a tongue. That tongue is part of a flexible beam which has a reduced thickness portion and, on one side of that portion, is connected to the above mentioned overhanging horizontal flange while being connected to the particular transducer head at the other side of the reduced thickness portion.
With that type of construction, the cited patent proposes to adjust the inclination of reproducing heads in high precision tape transport mechanisms. A difficulty can, however, be seen in that the transducer heads according to the cited reference are only supported at the lower ends by elastomeric material and that the entire precision mount of the individual transducers is relegated to the upper region at the above mentioned overhanging flange. The particular prior-art structure also requires the provision of considerable play or divergence between the screw attaching the above mentioned tongue to the transducer head and the corresponding bore in that tongue. In practice, this may provide a source of performance tolerances.
Another previously used head mount also employs a differential screw which, in that instance, has an axis of rotation extending in effect at right angles to the long dimension of an elongate head. Means coupled to a stationary structure for receiving one of these threads of the differential screw in threaded engagement include a cylindrical member having a longitudinal axis of rotation and an internal thread corresponding to the mentioned one thread of the differential screw and extending at right angles to the axis of rotation of the cylindrical member. The cylindrical member also has an axial slot intersecting the internal thread. The other of the threads of the differential screw is received in a connector that is attached to the particular transducing head. The mentioned cylindrical member is clamped into meshing engagement with the mentioned one thread of the differential screw by a clamping screw which extends at right angles to the axis of rotation of the cylindrical member.
In practice, this requires that the clamping screw be adjustable from the space in front of the transducer heads, which tends to encumber the assembly process and a subsequent adjustment of the clamping screw.
Moreover, despite a multitude of existing or proposed mounting structures, there persists a need for transducer mounts of increased stiffness at relatively low mass or weight.
Furthermore, existing transducer mounts require the provision of holes in their structure for the reception of fasteners for attaching the mount to a base plate. In practice, such mounting holes engender a variety of critical tolerances.